Russian Forces Advance in Pokrovsk, Ukraine

Afghan Voice Agency (AVA) - International Service: According to Russian officials, the capture of Pokrovsk, which is known as the "Gate to Donetsk", will allow the Russian army to move northward towards the important cities of Kramatorsk and Slavyansk in the Donetsk region.

 

Russia has declared its goal to fully control the Donbas region, which includes the Donetsk and Luhansk provinces. Currently, Ukraine controls about 10 percent of this region, equivalent to 5,000 square kilometers.

 

Ukrainian officials have also confirmed that the situation in Pokrovsk has become difficult, but have announced that their forces are still resisting and have rejected claims of a complete siege of the city.

 

The Russian Defense Ministry also announced that the army's assault units are destroying the besieged Ukrainian units in the eastern part of the central district and the western industrial zone of the city. According to reports, in the past 24 hours, 64 buildings in the city, which previously had a population of about 60,000, have been captured by Russian forces, and Ukrainian attacks have been repelled from the Hryshyne district.

 

Currently, Russian forces are only a few kilometers away from completing the encirclement around Pokrovsk and the neighboring city of Mirnohrad. Also in the Kharkiv region, Russian forces are approaching Ukrainian positions in the city of Kopiansk.